The Republic of Ireland assistant manager pulled out of ITV’s World Cup coverage and says that that his punditry days may be coming to an end because he has felt awkward commenting on players from the Irish squad.

"I'm not saying I wouldn't get back into it but I'd done my time,” he told The Daily Telegraph.

“I felt a bit awkward doing one or two matches where there were Irish players, I think there was maybe a little bit of conflict there.”

"Good luck to Gary Neville but we're all different. I just felt I didn't want to have any compromise regarding my role in football with punditry.

"I wouldn't have been tiptoeing around anybody but I felt it could have been awkward for one or two players I was maybe working with or commentating on, and I didn't want that issue."

The new assistant Aston Villa manager said that England’s decision to gamble on youth at the World Cup backfired and says a lack of experience in the squad was key to their downfall.

"I said England would struggle but that's not football knowledge, that's just common sense," Keane said.

"If you look at the squad, they should have done enough to get out of the group. The players didn't perform.”

"We played Costa Rica last month and if you had told me then they would top the group I'd have said you were mad. But if I look at the England squad and the players then a lot of them still lack vital experience. Whether it's Champions League experience or big-game experience.”

The 42 year-old pointed out that many of the squad lack the experience of winning silverware at club level, but one man who has should not be so easily written off by critics..

"If you think Wayne Rooney's gone, then you are sadly mistaken," he said.

"I thought he did OK. I'm sure he will feel that he should have done better. Top players are quick to look at themselves."